On Sunday afternoon, Israeli police confiscated Al Jazeera’s broadcasting gear from its Jerusalem offices, leading to the immediate suspension of the Qatari news channel’s broadcast in Israel.
Overview
Earlier the same day, the government voted unanimously to empower Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi to suspend Al Jazeera’s operations for 45 days, aligning with a law enacted by the Knesset in April, enabling the temporary shutdown of foreign media outlets perceived to threaten national security.
Following the cabinet’s decision, Karhi promptly mandated Israeli television providers to halt Al Jazeera’s broadcasts, ordered the closure of the network’s two Jerusalem offices, confiscated its broadcast equipment (including cellphones), and blocked access to the Al Jazeera website within Israel.
Within hours, Al Jazeera disappeared from Israel’s major TV providers, Yes and Hot. Additionally, both the English and Arabic websites of Al Jazeera became inaccessible on certain internet networks by Sunday evening.
Meanwhile, police officers and Communications Ministry inspectors arrived at Al Jazeera’s Jerusalem offices to seize broadcast equipment and secure the premises.
Al Jazeera condemned Israel's decision to shut down its network and raid its offices, stating that the channel ‘affirms its right to continue to provide news and information to its global audiences’ ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/iTYa6W0e97
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) May 5, 2024
Government Stance
“Al Jazeera’s journalists have harmed Israeli security and incited against IDF soldiers,” Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said in a joint press release issued together with Karhi’s office.
Meanwhile, Karhi said that “megaphones for Hamas” would not have freedom of expression in Israel. “Too much time has passed and there have been too many unnecessary legal hurdles in order to finally stop the well-oiled incitement machine of Al Jazeera, which harms national security,” he stressed.
Statement from Al Jazeera
In a statement on Sunday, the Al Jazeera Media Network called the move “deceptive and slanderous” and in disregard of “the universally recognised fundamentals of freedom of expression.” It condemned the “criminal act that violates human rights and the basic right to access of information” and affirmed its “right to continue to provide news and information to its global audiences.”
The media organisation further stated that Israel’s “ongoing suppression of the free press, seen as an effort to conceal its actions in the Gaza Strip, stands in contravention of international and humanitarian law.” It underscored that the country’s “direct targeting and killing of journalists, arrests, intimidation and threats will not deter [it] from its commitment to cover” the ongoing conclift.
It also called on “all media freedom, human rights, and other concerned organisations” to “condemn the repeated attacks on journalists and the press by Israel, and to hold those responsible to account.”